title: Caffeic acid phenethyl ester reduces spinal cord injury-evoked locomotor dysfunction.
abstract: Caffeic acid phenethyl ester (CAPE) is a component of propolis, which is a substance taken from the hives of honeybees, and is known to exhibit an anti-inflammatory activity. Such activity has been thought to be partly based on its potential and specific inhibitory activities toward nuclear factor-κB, a transcription factor. Therefore, in the present study, we evaluated the effect of CAPE on functional locomotor recovery after spinal cord injury (SCI) caused by hemi-transection, because inflammatory responses are a major cause of the secondary injury observed following SCI and play a pivotal role in regulating the pathogenesis of acute and chronic SCI. When CAPE was i.p.-administered at a dosage of 10 µmol/kg, it enhanced the recovery of locomotor function and reduced the lesion size while suppressing the expression of the mRNAs for a pro-inflammatory cytokine interleukin-1β and the inflammatory enzymes, inducible nitric oxide synthase and cyclooxygenase-2. These results suggest CAPE to be a promising therapeutic tool for reducing the secondary neuronal damage following primary physical injury to the spinal cord.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Gifu Pharmaceutical University, Japan.
authors.forename: Masaki
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kasai
authors.forename: Hidefumi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Fukumitsu
authors.forename: Hitomi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Soumiya
authors.forename: Shoei
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Furukawa
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D002109:Caffeic Acids / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D051546:Cyclooxygenase 2 / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D015536:Down-Regulation; D005260:Female; D053583:Interleukin-1beta / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D052247:Nitric Oxide Synthase Type II / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D010626:Phenylethyl Alcohol / Q000031:analogs & derivatives; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D013119:Spinal Cord Injuries / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D058630:Spinal Cord Regeneration / Q000187:drug effects*; D013904:Thoracic Vertebrae / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology; D014158:Transcription, Genetic
chemical_list: D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents; D002109:Caffeic Acids; D053583:Interleukin-1beta; D052247:Nitric Oxide Synthase Type II; D051546:Cyclooxygenase 2; C055494:caffeic acid phenethyl ester; D010626:Phenylethyl Alcohol